The present invention relates to a vehicle comprising an airbag firing electronic system.
Very strict requirements are imposed on the firing behavior of vehicle airbags. It must be ensured that the airbag system detects physical conditions occurring in the event of a crash as “fire conditions” and reliably fires the airbag. However, “misuse conditions,” which may share a certain degree of similarity with the physical conditions that are characteristic of crashes, should be positively distinguishable from “fire conditions.” To address these issues airbag systems are equipped with a variety of sensors, such as: acceleration sensors, which measure accelerations that are typical in the event of a crash; deformation sensors, which measure typical deformation of modules in the event of a crash; air pressure sensors, which measure, for example, the increase in air pressure that occurs in the door cavity in the event of a side collision; and the like. The single measurement and the monitoring of the “actual curves” of such signal signatures conceal the risk of measuring a signal progression that indicates a crash, even though there is no crash or a crash has not occurred yet, a state that may lead to a misfiring of the airbag system.
Therefore, critical accelerations may occur when a curbstone or a pothole is driven over at high speed. Such acceleration peaks are problematic, especially when they occur just before an actual crash. For example, a problem can occur when a vehicle skids off the road, drives over a curbstone, and the airbag is activated due to the resulting acceleration, and then the vehicle hits an impediment. In this case there is the risk that the airbag will be fired too early and, hence, is no longer available with its full ability during the actual crash.
One aspect of the invention is to provide a vehicle with an airbag firing sensor system, which avoids the aforementioned problems.
Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.